Samsung is selling so many smartphones that its chip division can’t keep up

In 2012, one of Samsung’s (005930) biggest problems was ridding itself of the “copycat” image Apple branded it with. The company appears to have succeeded. In 2013, Samsung has a new problem — but it’s a much better problem to have. According to a new report from Digitimes, Samsung is selling so many smartphones that its chip division simply can’t build enough memory modules to keep up with demand. As a result, the site’s unnamed sources say Samsung has had to turn to outside companies for help, and has been buying mobile DRAM chips from Elpida Memory and some NAND flash and eMMC modules from Toshiba. The report notes that Samsung’s memory module business is the largest in the world, so the shortages could have far reaching implications.